Chapter Text
Ashlyn opened her eyes and turned her head toward the cheep hotel clock to see what time it was. 6:00am. They weren't due for training for another two hours. She gently moved her arm from around Ali who had snuggled into her side during the night. The defender mumbled something in her sleep as Ashlyn slid out of bed gently. She opened the curtains slightly to see the beach below her. It was almost deserted except for a familiar figure running alone. She could recognize that run anywhere. She had watched it from the sideline and studied it's movement 1000 times. Ashlyn quickly threw on some sweats and an old unc sweatshirt and headed down to the lobby, careful to close the door quietly so she didn't wake Ali. A sleepy cafe attendant said something to her in portuguese that she didn't understand. Ashlyn shook her head and smiled, grabbing two to-go coffee cups. She filled both up and chucked milk and sugar into hers. She was about to do the same to the other one but paused. Did Hope like milk and sugar? She was pretty strict about her diet so probably not? She screwed on the tops and headed outside. At first she thought she had missed the older woman. Maybe she had gone back inside. She looked the other way down the beach and saw a faint figure sitting in the sand. She made her way over, walking up quietly, her flip-flops slipping off her feet.
"Hey"
"Hey" Hope responded, not looking at the younger woman.
Ashlyn sat down next to her, placing her coffee in the sand. "I wasn't sure If you wanted milk or sugar so I just…."
Hope smiled slightly. "Black is great. Thanks."
Ashlyn relaxed a little. "Your welcome."
The two sat in silence for a while, just watching the small waves break onto the shore.
"I wanted to thank you for leaving me that message before the France game. For saying that I would be fine and that you believed in me. It meant a lot. More than you know." Hope nodded, still staring out at the horizon.
"Did you mean it? What you said?"
Hope dug her toes into the sand and took another sip of coffee. "Every word. Iv'e watched you grow up and seen the work you have put in and progress you have made. Your a great goalkeeper. Ashlyn blushed.
"What are you doing up so early running?" Ashlyn asked. "You know Dawn will kill you if she finds out" she added, playfully nudging Hope.
Hope shrugged. "Couldn't sleep. My therapist says that for most people running or physical exertion when you have feelings of anxiety is healthy but for me it is the outward expression of childhood trauma that I have consistently run away from dealing with throughout my adult life. So I dunno maybe that's why.
Ashlyn squeezed Hopes arm.
"How are you?"
Hope was shredding her now empty coffee cup into pieces. "I'm okay"
"How are you really?"
Hope sighed, closing her eyes. "I just…I can't talk about it. Not now. Can we just…sit. Can we just sit and not talk?" Hopes voiced cracked, almost like she was begging. Ashlyn wondered how the strong, powerful woman she had always known was also this fragile creature sitting in front of her.
"Yeah…Yeah we can just..sit."
Abby walked by Hope and Kelley's room and saw the door slightly open with a small light on in the corner. She opened the door quietly and peeked inside. Kelley was reading a book with her iPhone as a light and Hope was fast asleep.
"Kelley!" Abby whispered. Kelley didn't hear her so she padded quietly into the room, tapping Kelley's book which she was holding over her face.
"Kelley it's two in the morning, what are you doing up?"
"What does it look like I'm doing?"
Abby rolled her eyes, pulling the book away from Kelley's face. "Don't be such a smartass, you need sleep. We have training at 7:00.
"I'll be fine Abby, don't worry about me. You can leave, and please close the door behind you on your way out."
Abby looked over at Hope. "Jesus Kelley if this has something to do with Hope dragging you into her bullshit…."
Kelley sat up, having heard enough. "Hope didn't drag me into anything" she whispered harshly. "If you must know she's been having nightmares. Every night since we got here. She tosses and turns, begging someone to stop and then she wakes up sweating and sobbing. I'm awake so that I can calm her down enough so she can go back to sleep. "You can leave. Now. And maybe next time, try minding your own fucking business."
Abby wanted to say something. Something that would soothe Kelley. Anything she tried to say sounded stupid in her head so she left, resigned to wonder how that tiny freckled ball of energy had gotten Hope to trust her.